New Hurst city manager to be announced soon

A new city manager could be chosen in mid-March after council members interview two candidates.

Allan Weegar, who has been city manager since 1997, said last month that he is retiring after a 36-year career with Hurst.

City spokeswoman Ashleigh Johnson said that the job was posted internally, and two assistant city managers, Jeff Jones and Clay Caruthers, applied for the position.

Council members will interview Jones and Caruthers on Thursday.

“We’ve got two highly qualified, fantastic candidates in house,” Weegar said.

“The council didn’t see any need to hire a search firm. [Jones and Caruthers] know the city and know our employees. They know the future needs of the city.”

Weegar said he will stay on until July to help the transition to a new city manager.

Caruthers, assistant city manager of fiscal services, was finance director until he was promoted to his current position. He is active in Hurst’s leadership development program and received the city’s leadership achievement award.

Before coming to Hurst, Caruthers worked in private-sector finance and professional baseball.

He graduated magna cum laude from TCU with a bachelor of business administration degree while lettering for the Horned Frogs baseball team.

He also earned a master’s degree from the University of North Texas, where he graduated with honors.

Caruthers also volunteers with the Hurst-Euless-Bedford Rotary Club and is involved with the Birdville High School Lady Hawks basketball booster club.

Jones, assistant city manager of administration, oversees the Hurst Conference Center, economic development and tourism initiatives.

His other responsibilities include overseeing recycling and solid waste, communications, customer service and meter-reading operations.

Jones was hired in 1998 and was promoted to assistant city manager in 2002. He graduated from Black Hills State University with a Bachelor of Science in political science and sociology. He earned a master’s degree in public administration from Texas Tech University.

Jones is also active in the community and is past chairman of the United Way Northeast steering committee, past president of the H-E-B Rotary Club and past chairman of the Roadrunner District for the Boy Scouts of America.

He serves on the H-E-B ISD Education Foundation board.

This story was originally published March 8, 2016 at 2:16 PM with the headline "New Hurst city manager to be announced soon."